42,000 drivers unable to renew ICBC licenses for unpaid tolls

ICBC is blocking 42,000 drivers from renewing their vehicle insurance and driver’s license until they pay their unpaid tolls on the Port Mann Bridge and Golden Ears Bridge.

This amounts to 25,000 drivers on the Port Mann Bridge and 17,000 on the Golden Ears Bridge. According to the CBC, the outstanding fines for the Port Mann Bridge alone total $3-million.

As a mechanism for payment, drivers receive a “Refuse to Issue” notice for their ICBC file if they owe more than $25 for their payment and it is 90 days overdue. Three warnings are sent to drivers before their file is blacklisted.

The Transportation Investment Corporation charges interest of 1.5 per cent per month for the Port Mann Bridge while TransLink charges interest of 2 per cent for the Golden Ears Bridge.

For the Port Mann Bridge, between 15 to 20 per cent do not pay their toll on time largely because they are not registered with the automatic pre-authorized payment TReO bridge tolling system.

There are also those who have out-of-province license plates, which are captured using tolling cameras. Invoices are sent to these drivers who do not pay in time.

While the number of drivers who have unpaid tolls might seem alarming, it only represents a small fraction of the total drivers who use the crossings. About 100,000 vehicles and 30,000 vehicles use the Port Mann Bridge and Golden Ears Bridge on a daily basis, respectively.

In addition to drivers with unpaid tolls, another 9,300 people are on ICBC’s blocked list for unpaid spouse or child support payments. The insurance corporation also manages delinquent files for TransLink, which totals 4,100 people who have unpaid debts from failing to pay fare evasion fines.